How did you learn manual

in the traffic jam, it could indeed be great...but only in this cae ;)

Originally posted by -cy-
Ok, i notice a lot of people learn on older cars and not so important ones. Well, this is going to be my car for a while and i wanna keep it from the damage of learning if possible.

Just buy the car you want, you'd have to be really, and I mean REALLY crap to do any serious damage. But if you do end up doing damage, you'll have to replace what... the clutch, and the gearbox, whoop de doo. If you damage more than that, it would be from idiotic driving rather than unskilled learning.

Originally posted by Route666
But if you do end up doing damage, you'll have to replace what... the clutch, and the gearbox, whoop de doo. If you damage more than that, it would be from idiotic driving rather than unskilled learning.

I've had my formula (6 speed) for about a year and a half, and i'm fine with manual, and have been for a long time.

Anyways, the car did need a new clutch and some tranny rebuilding (syncro's and a shift fork or 2) which was due to the first owner, being that the tranny was already screwed up when i got it. Thats not a cheap, little deal. A decent clutch runs around $800, and a GOOD one will run up to $1000, not including install price (i install my own stuff, so that doesn't matter for me though)

The rebuild, not including the clutch, ran me $1200...a tranny isn't a cheap thing to work on.

Like everything I do I'm a natural.

Showoff! :D ;) :o

Im gonna be doing my test in a few months time, so Id also like too know:

-Is it neccesary to downshift when stopping too a halt, if so, does it get confusing too downshift when braking, as in too much work and things get on top of you?

Originally posted by Blitzen


Showoff! :D ;) :o

Im gonna be doing my test in a few months time, so Id also like too know:

-Is it neccesary to downshift when stopping too a halt, if so, does it get confusing too downshift when braking, as in too much work and things get on top of you?
Where I did my test drive,in Belgium, it was necessary to be able to downshift when braking, but only when nearing a red stop light and slow moving or stopped objects.

I don't think it gets confusing at all ; downshifting is the only thing you have to focus on in the beginnning, and just use the brake to stop from 20 mph to 0 and to make your brakelight light up.

But I guess if you practice, it will go as a blast and love it in no time !

As said before, The manual tranny is way better for enjoying driving.

Peace , Olivier

I took my test in an auto tranny car, i dunno about the rules for downshifting while coming to a stop in a manual.

As far as getting confusing, it ca be kinda weird at first. Once you drive some and get used to it, you'll be able to go from gas to brake and downshift smoothly. Just practice.

I learned to drive manual trannys on a Vietnam era 5-Ton military truck. Training for the Marines required it, yet soon after learning to drive these huge POSs they phased them out...the trucks are all auto now (to my dismay!). They had the longest clutch ever...I was practically kneeing myself in the stomach with each shift! And it didn't help to have a pissed off instructor all over your ass about stalling...but you can't help stalling. So I got him a little more pissed, lol!

I learned by driving an automatic like a standard, but My integra is a automatic, cause my rents gave it to me, I crashed my Honda Civic which was a standard, just make sure u let off the clutch and press on the gas at equal intervals, or else it could stall, nothing is more embarrassing then stalling on a road or a hill:bloated:

dave

I learned on a 86' 323, which wasn't hard, but i did manage to accidentally lay a patch on my first attempt at starting(quite a feat in that car, even purposely). You'll stall lots, bounce lots and maybe even spin the tires a few times, but don't worry about damaging the car.

i learned manual when i was about 6-7 years old back in poland. i drove a tractor which was manual ofc so i got the experience that way..when i first drove my grandpa's audi (when i was 11) it was manual aswell and i had no prob driving it. (it was out in the country so you never ever see cops)

Most cars here in Brazil are manuals, so that's what I learned with. I can't stand auto cars, just too boring... I feel old when driving an auto car, lol

Alright, i am almost 17, been driving for about a year and a half (including when i had my permit) on ONLY AUTO's. No one in my family or close friends have manuals. The one time i got to drive stick was 2 times with an '85 subaru station wagon, and i didn't so too well. Anyways, i am looking into cars like a Firebird Formula and with any car with power i want a stick for fun and because the car deserves it. My worry is about messing up the clutch a lot learning on the car i get. How did you learn?


Try this http://www.10w40.com/individual/100186.asp

Me and my brother worked in restaurants when we were fifteen and managed to put our money together and buy a 90 4 door integra. We actually bought the car before we got our liceances. He learned how to drive manual from a friend and he taught me in a church parking lot. Even though he was still pretty new at it, I got the hang of it on the first day. I won't own anything other than manual. You feel like you have more control over the car.

I learned how when I was looking for a Mustang to buy. I just went to little dealers that had them and they let me test drive them by myself! I do feel bad for who-ever bought those cars though....man did I ride the clutch when I was getting used to the manual!!!

Originally I was gonna go with an automatic when getting ready to buy my '02 TA, but everyone said I'd be much happier getting a 6-speed especially in a sports car. They sure were right! I had a crash course driving a stick in a Jeep Wrangler exactly one weekend before buying the TA. So, I pretty much learned on my new car, but it didn't take long at all... call it incentive, I guess... (however stalling can get quite embarrassing at first). :iceslolan

I remember test driving a 6 speed T/A. I did it for a friend because she was 17 and you had to be 18 to test drive it. Much different from the little Japanese cars i'm used to. It gives your left leg a good work out.

i learned on many cars. i didn't have the luxury of learning in one car. i learned back when i worked for a jiffy lube. i learned in customer cars. and every clutch really is different.

i learned on many cars. i didn't have the luxury of learning in one car. i learned back when i worked for a jiffy lube. i learned in customer cars. and every clutch really is different.


No offense but....one reason why I never go to Jiffy Lube!

I first got a good feel for a clutch on dirt bikes, then the transistion was easy. My first car was a '78 Subaru spray painted camo that I picked up for $138. It ran fine and all it needed was an air filter and a radiator cap. I used this car to hone my manual transmission driving skillz. Almost everything I ever wanted to in a car, I did with my Subaru. I drove through ditchs, on quad trails, through the trees, and over curbs. I jumped on the roof, beat it with a pipe, and even shot it with one of my rifles. I would redline the bitch and then dump the clutch just for kicks. I even had a cop called on me for a noise violation after one tire smoking episode. The one thing I really wanted to do, though, was to build a big jump and drive off it at an angle so I would catch air and then roll it. But my fun was cut short when I let my friend drive out on a gravel road in the hills. We came sliding around a narrow corner only to see a car coming at us headon. That was the first accident I was involved in. I had some good memories with that car though.

Ma Duke would be proud... :lol:

Lmao B16 siRII !!

oh yeah well i learned on a kia rio hahahahahah
now i get to stall my friends 240

i learned on the fuel truck at my work (airport). and i also learned on my dads toyota t100 truck. i learned how to race with a manual in my brothers saturn (right now he has cold air intake, performance spark plug wires, crankcase breather, and moved the battery in the back for better handling). i am getting a manual 300zx soon, i have an automatic right now. i cant stand automatics, they piss me off.

i learned on the fuel truck at my work (airport)
So you learnt how to drive in a fuel truck on an airfield eh?
:uhoh:

So you learnt how to drive in a fuel truck on an airfield eh?
:uhoh:

oh yeah, you can speed shift and everything...lol. i actually have tried racing it before, it didnt go so well. it tops out at 40. the tranny is a pos so it was really hard. but hey, it got my brother to let me start driving his car. but when i first drove his car with his mods, when i speed shifted from 1st to 2nd, it almost ripped the steering wheel out of my hands, but now im fine with it, until he gets his exhaust and headers :evillol: . if you wanna see his car, its at http://www.cardomain.com/memberpage/471467

well i "learned" 3 times.. and the last time i was successful
the first time was with my friends car.. i duno what car.. some old european one.. i stalled the shit outta his car the first few tries so he wouldn't let me anymore..
the second time i "thought" i would be able to drive it.. i went to a toyota dealer.. and tried it on a 6 speed celica.. i kept going into reverse instead of first.. and i finally got it in first gear.. then i miss shifted into 4th.. the car died..
the last time.. which was the sucessful time.. i asked my uncle to borrow his 89 accord.. i had all the time in the world.. but this time it was weird because i got it right away... i took the rest of the time to perfect my driving.. but one thing is i still drive an auto accord.. so i hope i can drive it when the time comes..

i learned by nearly driving an 86 Toyota pickup into the ground...

now i drive a 90 BMW 525i which is luxurious

i'm 15 now, but i learned last year on my dad's '98 maxima on a parking lot. now he we go to that same parking lot but now it's in an RX-8 6 speed. that shifter is amazing...

oh god i love the rx-8 shifter (my friends mom owns one). it just feels so good in your hand. and the throws are so short. but to bad the car doesnt live up to the rotary heritage. c'mon mazda, under 250 hp?!?!?!?!?! and foor doors?!?!?!?!

I learned on a very shitty 72 Toyota P/U. My dad made me drive it from where he works to the house. I had never driven a stick, but I had read enough car magazines that i kinda understood. My advice on learning would be like a Walmart parkin lot late at night. Just practice on an easy clutch first, like an accord.

I learned in a 2.0si 88 prelude, on a very steep hill with a trucker in a hurry behind me behind a grocery store


vrrroooooooooom, screeeeeech, gauh. I stalled it. no, but I can't stand auto's, people complain about there foot hurting in traffic but thats cause they are to dumb to shift into nuetral like they should, Those poor clucth bearing hurt on most cars so make sure you shift to nuetral.

I learned driving my dads sod trucks in the sod fields at age 12...man of few words said..."when the wheels start turning...get your foot off the clutch..."

i learned in my first car a 74 super bug i been driving stick since i was thirteen

damn i miss that car!!!

."when the wheels start turning...get your foot off the clutch..."

the wheels dont usually spin until you let off the clutch... oh unless you are one of those idiots that rides the clutch all the time.

."when the wheels start turning...get your foot off the clutch..."

the wheels dont usually spin until you let off the clutch... oh unless you are one of those idiots that rides the clutch all the time.
Actually the wheels start turning at biting point.

How about being a little nicer to people on your 3rd post, eh noob? :rolleyes:

Learned in one of Papa's car...
And was threatened that if I couldn't drive a stick, I couldn't get my own car from him.

haha, learned it with the crappiest of ALL:
I BOW TO THEE FIAT PALIO 1.4 :P

i dont have my licence, im 15, but my sister wanted to show me how to drive manual when i was 14. her car was parked in front of my lawn and she wanted me to park it in the driveway. first I pulled the handbrake so it wouldn't move, put the car in neutral, clutch in, start the car, put it in first gear, clutch out to slow, gas in to fast, revs go up, clutch out, SQUEEEEEEEEEL. forgot to remove the parking brake lol. the second time i went to fast and almost hit a wooden post, she hasn't let me touch her car since (it's a '89 accord). later my dad took me to the Corel Center (the ottawa senators hockey statium in ottawa canada for you americans who might not know the sport) and i only stalled twice in 1-2 hours.

Well i am still wet behind the ears when it comes to driving a manual. The first time was on my sixteenth birthday (5 months ago). The guy driving just pulls over on the side of the road and says "your driving" i was like what!!!! I didn't know what the hell to do so the guy starts telling me when to put my foot on the clutch, let off shift then put foot back on the gas. So i still need a few tips or someone who has been driving stick for a while :D

My cool friend who thinks he's a genius tried to teach me to drive manual. I can drive it well now but he did not bother to tell me at first that I have to keep the clutch in while pushing the gas instead of pushing the clutch, letting off, and THEN pressing the gas. So sometimes I would do fine, other times, when I did not press the gas soon enough, I stalled out without understanding why. Then he told me to drive on my own while he watched and I nearly got my friend and I killed. DEFINATELY ran a car off the road :bricks1: I should have just had my Dad teach me from the start. I don't know why I let someone try to teach me how to drive who also tried to tell me that eating mashed potatoes would make my boobs bigger...

I showed my girlfriend how to drive a stick so she could drive home when I was wasted.

The first car I tried it on was my friends 85 Honda CRX. That car had no low end power so I had a hell of a time getting it moving. I got comfortable driving a Ford Medium Duty flatbed at my old job. All the numbers were worn off the knob, but my coworker told me it was a "standard H-pattern". So I put in first, let out the clutch and it goes. It had a granny tranny so you don't need to give it gas in first and reverse. I went to shift into second and i hear a loud "DONG" and the stick is jerked back into neutral. I try it again and again I hear a "DONG". So I put the stick up and to the right and it goes into second. Turns out 1st and Rev are across from each other, lol.

I learned to drive stick at the age of 9 by watching my step dad do it in the company tow truck. Many years later I picked up a stick shift car and I'm one of the few that can say I've never stalled out during the learning process. Many fast and jerky starts but never stalled out.

My dad taught me when I was 15 on a 1976 Chevy Chevette many moons ago. Now I look forward (hahaha..ya right) to teaching my son when he gets his permit next month (September).

I'd suggest using a low geared truck or tractor to start with, something thats basically impossibe to kill to give you an initial feel for the clutch.

i learned on a my friends damn saturn, but now im getting a talon tsi w/ a 16g turbo, thats about 20 psi, how will it be diffently driving stick on a turbo because im not that good yet

pretty similar to the way i learned auto's

first time was my dad saying can you move my truck (didn't tell me how) i reversed down the driveway and clipped the fence... it fell over... dad had done it the week before and had just fixed the fence... we needed a wider gate anyway...

i learned auto when i was 6 or 7 (about 3 months before manual) my dad just moved over one day when i went to get in the car and said "it's your turn now" (again no instruction) and on a public road....we lived in the country

my brothers friend taught me in his truck. i learned in 5 minutes.
didn't drive a stick anymore after that for 4-5 years. but for some reason i still knew how to drive a stick.
so 5 years later, i got in a talon and just drove. its like riding a bike

i learned when i was 10( 3 years ago) in my brothers 89 maxima se. then i learned how to get out of first gear about a year ago in my dads nissan hardbody, now i can drive stick fine.

that makes me wonder what people mean when they say they can drive....sorry dude we all learn some time...

i learned how tod rive a manual the hard way... i had bought a saturn to learn how to drive a stick and get good gas mileage.. well long story short my turck broke down and i was later for work and the saturn was all i had to get there... had to learn pretty damm quick.. lol

My step dad's VW rabbit (diesel).

You wanna talk about had to learn fast...I learned how to drive stick when I bought a Subaru and had to drive it home, I learned on the way, only stalled once!! But did burnouts everytime I had to leave a stop light lol.

I learned by leaving a 10 foot mark in front of my grandpa's driveway. That was the first time I drove a manual. Now I drive a 91 CRX with a manual transmission. The day after I bought it I just got plates for it, so I decided to take it for a drive. I was coming up to this steep hill on a 4-lane highway, and the light was red. Did an illegal u-turn, I knew that I would hit someone if I stopped.

ok now thats a situation i find hard to visualise....

hang on... do you mean you'd roll back into them?

Did you even drive manual? When you get off the brake and the clutch is pressed to the floor, the car will immideatly start going down the hill. There were cars behind me. I was still a beginner, so I had a hard time finding the spot where the clutch starts sticking. The way you're supposed to do it, is release the clutch to the point where it starts to stick, get off the brake, accelerate, and let the clutch out. But when you're learning how to drive, it's pretty hard to get that spot right. If you don't release it enough, the car will roll down the hill, if you let it out too much, the car will stall

i've been driving manual since i was 10 or 12, i guess i take it for granted now. usually one of the first things you should learn is a handbrake start though...till you get that feel. It's also handy for if you have a loaded truck.. or a drop off behind you... or...

Learned on my aunts 92 Corolla...My and my dad were in the parking lot for 3 hours the first day getting my starts perfect...then i just took to the roadand learned as i went

i learned on my dads jeep wrangler.. now i got that bad boy offroading and driving just fine on the roads

I learned on a Suzuki Vitara ( mini SUV) the summer of turning 16... i can remember my neighbors standing in the road counting out how many times i stalled it trying to put it into the drive way on a slope of about 20 degrees... they got up to about 8 before i got it into the driveway... while this was with my mom.. my grandfather got in and made me start and go like 20 times before he let me shift above 2nd... i think he was the reason i finally figured it out... give the car some gas then just slowly let off the clutch after sometime i finally got it down...